


Bardic Inspiration

by zarinthel



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: M/M, Working Title: Thancred's Cringe Compilation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-07
Updated: 2019-12-07
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:35:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21708316
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zarinthel/pseuds/zarinthel
Summary: The true cringe? Reciprocated affection.
Relationships: Warrior of Light/Thancred Waters
Comments: 2
Kudos: 44





	Bardic Inspiration

**Author's Note:**

> this work uses my wol, Valerian Caligorne. He's a BLM main for all of ARR.

Thancred leans against the wall inside the Walking Sands, a little tired from his time spent investigating the ever mysterious Ascians. He justifies the break to himself inside his head. It’s just a coincidence that--

Valerian pushes open the door to the solar and walks back out, smiling at Minfilia warmly before closing the door behind him. The long strands of his purple hair fall around his face like a curtain, and the basic black cotton of his thaumaturgical robes hang loosely around him. 

It’s nothing-- particularly special. 

“Thancred!” Valerian says, sounding shockingly delighted to see him. Or perhaps just startled?

Thancred coughs, disguises it as clearing his throat, and drops into a short bow. 

“Valerian! Looking as beauteous as ever this morning!” It’s afternoon. “Like a flower shining in the morning dew.” 

He watches Valerian tilt his head to the side, oddly colored eyes showing the barest hint of confusion. 

“Thank you,” Valerian says, finally. “How did you know I was named after a flower?” 

Yda giggles from down the hall. That girl... mind your own business. 

“Well...” Thancred pauses scrambling for something else to say. “With someone as pretty as you,” This is too forward. Backpedal. “As _talented_ as you, it just seemed natural.” 

Maybe he should try taking a Vow of Silence. The giggles behind him have progressed to full body laughter. _Shut Up, Yda._

“Oh, my mom would be so pleased to hear that.” Valerian places no emphasis on the words, making it extremely difficult to tell how sincere he’s being. Or if this is a good thing at all. The elezen walks closer, making their full head of height different very apparent. “It’s unfortunate the Shroud isn’t your territory, though.” 

Thancred finds himself having to tip his head back in order to keep eye contact. He swallows. 

“Yes... I find my talents are more suited to city life. I’m simply not the Scion for the Twelveswood.” 

Valerian’s eyebrows lift for a second, and then settle back into his neutral, uncommunicative expression. 

“That’s a shame.” 

Thancred desperately tries to figure out what Valerian means by this. 

“Yes... but my experience with life in Ul’dah really does make me better suited to aid you whenever you visit the lovely rose of the desert. If you intend to go back there... ?” 

Valerian nods. 

“I like Ul’dah. And the Thaumaturgy Guild is there.” 

“Yes... that is the case.” Gods damn it. “Is there any... other reason you might wish to visit Ul’dah?” 

Valerian blinks at him. 

“I live there?”

* * *

“Welcome to Drybone, Valerian. We need to get down to business soon enough, but I can show you around--”

“Oh, my cousins used to take me here whenever they had money.” 

Huh?

“They’re from South Shroud, since it’s hard for Duskwights to party without getting the Wood Wailers called. It was a whole thing, and I can teleport them in when I’m told in advance.” Valerian makes a dismissive gesture. “I like it here. Where did you want to show me, Thancred?” 

Thancred’s mouth dries up. 

“Nothing..” he says vaguely. It’s nothing.

* * *

“Hello, lovely ladies,” Thancred says, dropping into a sweeping bow as he makes his way down the Sapphire Avenue Exchange. “It’s been too long since I saw your stunning visages...” 

The girl on the left giggles, leaning into him. 

“Oh, Thancred, that was only yesterday! Really--” 

“Hi Thancred,” Valerian says from behind him. “Are you busy? I just got done dealing with the Thaumaturgy--” 

Thancred whirls around so fast that he nearly gives himself whiplash. 

“Valerian! I didn’t see you there. What a wonderful surprise. I just had a chance meeting with these young ladies, but really I’m--” 

“He promised to take us to the theatre next time he was in town,” the roegadyn on the right says, leaning in to hang heavily on his shoulder. “Isn’t that right?” 

“Oh that’s wonderful,” Valerian says to her, smiling. “What play? I’m new in town so I didn’t know we had a troupe.” 

“It’s his choice,” the girl says, pointing at Thancred. 

Ah-- 

“Then I hope you have fun, Thancred,” Val says, voice still sweet and level. “I’ve got a few more errands to run for the Goldsmith Guild, so I’ll see you around. Bye!” 

He’s already on his way before Thancred can get his next sentence out of his mouth.

* * *

“Hey Thancred, are you alright?” Valerian’s low voice shakes Thancred awake from where he’d dozed off at the bar room counter. Wha... 

He feels unfamiliar arms wrap around him, draping over his shoulder to lift him up. 

“Tell me if you’re going to throw up, okay. We can handle that... we just need some advance warning. Let’s just have you sleep this off in my room, alright?” The voice.. Its so soothing.. “I don’t know where you live, so this will have to do.” 

Valerian makes a low noise of pain as he continues walking, and through the slurry of his mind the reason Thancred was even drinking to begin with begins to dawn on him. 

_Ifrit..._

Valerian had looked-- wounded, but fine when Thancred had finally managed to arrive after the defeat of the Primal, damaged but not horribly so. However--

It was his feet. 

He was a thaumaturge... Valerian needed to stand still in order to cast his spells. And Ifrit had turned the ground into a burning hell. 

Valerian had just said--- he’d get better at dodging, better at gauging reaction times. 

Everything would be fine, as long as he got better. 

But Thancred had seen the scars. His shoes had _melted_. Fire scars wrapped up to his ankles, lapping at his legs with hungry abandon. And..

“I can walk,” Thancred manages to mumble. It doesn’t really come out at much of any comprehensible sound. “Let me walk.” 

“Shh...” Valerian ignores him. “My home isn’t that far away. I wish I knew how to heal...” 

Thancred has had that thought often. 

“I’m sorry,” he says, drunkenly butchering his most important words. “You were alone...” 

Valerian fails to understand him. 

“I’ve got extra sleepwear,” he says, voice low and comforting. “And you can borrow my extra robes. Let’s get you home, come on--”

Thancred’s memory blacks out after that point.

* * *

“You look cute today,” Valerian tells him. “I like your--” He gestures at the band of fabric around Thancred’s neck. “Necklace.” Valerian tucks a strand of his vibrant hair behind his ear, leaning back into the seat at the table of which Thancred has collapsed on. 

It’s not his fault Moenbryda challenged him to a drinking contest. 

Thaliak preserve him, his head aches. 

“Val...” His voice trails off. “Ah, it hurts...” 

He freezes when he feels a soft pair of lips kiss his forehead. 

“That’s pretty cute too,” Valerian says, the hint of amusement Thancred had previously missed now clear in his tone. “Time to get up, Thancred. The light will hurt your eyes.” 

Thancred blinks, trying to look past the drink in order to stare at Valerian. Sober him is going to regret this. Well, fuck him. He’s an idiot. 

“You’re more radiant than any dawn,” he gets out, carefully pronouncing each word to avoid the slur of his tongue. “My...” He loses a little bit of where he was going with this. “My light. My ultraviolet--” 

Valerian’s laughter blindsides him, sending wild spikes through his heart. 

“You can be my light too, okay?” Valerian throws a familiar arm over him, dragging him off the table of the Stones to the Scion’s private quarters. “My nightlight. Keep me safe when it’s dark. Come on Thancred, you know the bed’s not that way.” 

“M’ head hurts.” 

“Yeah, Thancred. I know.”

* * *

The adventurer he’d run into at the Sultan Tree blinks at him from his position in front of the Sil’dah Aqueducts. A beaten and worn bone staff hangs from one hand as he reaches to pull his hood down, letting his long purple hair fall freely. 

“Hi,” Valerian says, head cocked inquisitively. “Thanks for the help.” 

“Oh, it’s always a delight to come to the rescue of such a dashing individual,” Thancred manages. “If you didn’t catch my previous introduction--”

“A scholar,” Valerian says. Half of his mouth quirks up. “Harmless.” 

Ah, yes. His persona. So Valerian had asked about him... ?

“I see that my appearance captivated your imagination. But truly, I find myself awestruck by your own performance, Valerian. If you keep on ending up embroiled in such situations, I find myself wondering if I should always simply shadow you?” 

“You could do that,” Valerian says. The words have no inflection, catching Thancred flat footed. 

“I’m only joking, I assure you,” he says hastily. “Had I known you were in trouble, I would of course have intervened right away.” 

Valerian nods. 

“I believe you.” 

....

Thancred coughs, and begins to beat a hasty retreat.

* * *

He finds Valerian fast asleep, taking a nap among the gravestones. It’s been a long time since they were both in Drybone together, but he at least knows enough to track one lost elezen down. 

“Val,” he whispers, kneeling down the sleeping body. “It’s going to rain, Val. Let’s get you inside.” 

“Mm...” Valerian makes a half awake groan as he stirs, his eyes still stubbornly shut. The long purple tresses of his hair spread out around him, damp from the morning dew. His dark blue skin stands out against the sun baked dirt and pale tombstones that surround him. “It’s cold.” 

“Yeah, silly,” Thancred sighs, reaching down to brush the hair away from Valerian’s face. “That’s because you feel asleep outside again.” 

“It’s cold,” Valerian repeats, his words slow and insistent. 

Thancred watches him push himself up off the ground, but only enough to latch onto Thancred, wrapping his arms around the startled rogue with surprising speed. 

“Cold,” Valerian repeats, voice quieter. “Hey Thancred... it was pretty cold in Coerthas.” 

Something clenches inside of Thancred’s chest. Not the guilt that haunts his every waking hour. What...

“I wish I’d been here,” he finally says. 

“Me too,” Valerian says, his voice so soft that Thancred has to strain to hear it. “Me too.”

* * *

Thancred looked up as Valerian wandered into the Waking Sands, preparing to intercept Valerian right before he made his customary turn to speak to Arenvald down the hall. There’s no reason to overthink this. They’re coworkers now. 

“Valerian!” He says. Ugh... too eager. “What a surprise to see you so early this morning.” 

“Minfillia called me here,” Valerian says. “I have.... A job... ?” But his steps come to a stop directly in front of Thancred, patiently waiting for him to continue. His eyes, Thancred only realizes now, are two different shades of purple, each one just odd enough to merit it’s own poetic metaphor. Are they contacts?  
He somehow doesn’t think so. 

Valerian’s hair is a darker purple than either of his eyes, and long strands of it fall past his shoulders as he shifts, highlighting the dark blue tinge to his skin. He’s quietly waiting for Thancred to continue the conversation. 

“Your hair,” Thancred starts, “It’s quite an unusual shade... of purple.” That sounds closer to an insult than a compliment. Gods, what other beautiful things are purple. Plums? Violets? ... Certain kinds of poisonous mushrooms? “It’s like... a cloudy sunset.” No. “I mean.. It shines the way the setting sun turns the clouds purple....like wine” It’s not a good metaphor if he has to say purple again. 

“Purple is my favorite color,” Valerian says, rescuing him from that sentence before it grows heavy enough to be used as a shovel to dig him even deeper. 

“That’s..lucky.” 

Valerian nods. 

The silence stretches for what feels like an eternity. 

“Your eyes,” Valerian states, “Remind me of cognac diamonds. And your hair of the desert’s bleached bones. Good morning, Thancred. It was wonderful to see you.” With that, he continues ahead, ducking quickly past the guard’s into Minfilia’s room. 

The only bright part is that Yda wasn’t present to see that. Thank the gods for the smallest of mercies. 

His eyes track back to the door Valerian walked through. Surely it will be fine if he waits here... a little longer...

**Author's Note:**

> please comment : ) I love to hear from people


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